The Smallest Contributions Make the Biggest Difference

Although I intended to recount my volunteer experiences starting from high school, my class debate today reiterated my views on the concept of helping others, further emphasizing the fact that everyone can make a difference in the world, and of course, I just had to share it with you.

The debate started after following Doctor Paul Farmer on his journey of dedication, passion, and compassion in the passage "The Good Doctor" by Tracy Kidder. As Kidder travels alongside Dr. Farmer in his efforts to provide health care to underprivileged populations in countries such as Haiti, he describes the poor citizens, the rapid spread of illnesses, and the lack of medicinal advancements surrounding the nation. Kidder then explains Dr. Farmer's thoughts on health care as a human right.

Midway through our discussion, controversy among students ensued when the professor asked, "Do citizens of wealthy countries have moral responsibilities to poor people in other countries? And is health care a human right?" While most claimed that it is a moral obligation to commit self-less acts of volunteerism to dying people of an under-developed nation, several disagreed with the fact.

Throughout the entire debate, I sat and listened to the opposing viewpoints being presented, thinking about my own thoughts and stance on the issue. I came to a conclusion that more or less agrees with and expands upon Dr. Farmer's ideas. The facts made me realize the true meaning of giving. Yeah, the money donations can help out a child or two, but the mere importance of volunteerism is the actual act of giving --- the time we put into helping others. The experience. I do not feel that it is an obligation to help those in need, but believe that we should often perform self-less acts in order to better society and the world.

Dr. Farmer's beliefs have allowed me to think about the many privileges that America has given me. There are the obvious luxuries, like the newest iphone, that we take for granted, and there are the underlying privileges we fail to recognize, like electricity. One piece of information a classmate pointed out was that underprivileged countries are weak nations that lack basic resources as a result of American greed. Yes, it may be a cliched theme to a classic American novel (hmm...The Great Gatsby, perhaps?), but the truth of the matter is, American greed actually exists in the real-world. I'm not saying that we should completely give up our use of such luxuries, but we should think about the implications of over-using our smallest privileges. The opportunities we have and the privileges we hold are gifts we should share with others, no matter how small of a contribution it may be.

"A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both"

~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

**Click here to read "The Good Doctor"by Tracy Kidder, published in The New Yorker (July 10, 2000)